Home » Crime, Featured » PC Yannick Wade charged for stolen guns and ammo from San Pedro Police Station

May 5, 2014

PC Yannick Wade charged for stolen guns and ammo from San Pedro Police Station

Yannick Wade

A police officer was returned to court late this evening for charges relating to stolen guns and ammunition from the San Pedro Police Station. Police Officer Yannick Wade was rushed to the courtroom of Chief Magistrate Anne Marie Smith where he was arraigned for a total of thirteen criminal charges; he was unrepresented because when he went to court earlier in the afternoon, he could not be arraigned. The charges are for nine counts of Theft for allegedly dishonestly appropriating eight point thirty-eight revolvers and one hundred and one rounds of ammunition of the same calibre between April thirtieth and May second from the San Pedro Police Station. Wade is also facing two counts of kept firearm without a gun license and two counts of kept ammunitions. He pleaded not guilty to all thirteen counts and is tonight behind bars.

Last week Friday, the San Pedro Police Department received a black eye when eight guns and ammunition placed there for safekeeping by KBH Security were stolen. The crime, allegedly committed by a policeman, was devastating to the Department, and the response has been swift. Within twenty-four hours Belize City Police had arrested Wade and had recovered two of the missing weapons and ammunition. The weapons and ammunition were recovered on Friday night during a search by Belize City Police. But the speedy arrest and recovery have brought with them extreme criticism of police. News Five spoke to family members of Wade today, accompanied by his attorney. They claim that police acted unprofessionally and abused them unnecessarily. Here’s that story.

Mike Rudon, Reporting

On Friday night Belize City Police picked up twenty-four year old Yannick Wade. He was at home with his mother when they showed up at the door and demanded entry. Wade was in the shower, but Police barged right in.

Desiree Nicholas, Mother of Yannick Wade

“He couldn’t wait. He pushed open the bathroom door and he dragged the curtain with my son in the shower. I stood at the door and I saw his nakedness, so Mr. Broaster saw him naked too…and they told him that he had to get out the shower…and then they proceeded to search. They didn’t mess up my room where I was with the two Policemen but where he was in his room…his room was like a tornado passed through. They threw things all over the place, they pulled out drawers, all kind of mess they made in the room. They dug up my daughter’s room same way.”

Mark Patnett

They found nothing there, so they moved to a residence on Cemetery Road, the family home of Wade’s girlfriend. Wade’s father-in-law Mark Patnett was there with his wife, three daughters and two small children. He says officers spared nothing during an intensive search, trashing the place. It looked like the scene after a hurricane. Police found nothing inside the home, but then turned their attention outside.

Mark Patnett, Father-in-Law of Yannick Wade

“They brought us outside and took us to that side over there and told us that they will search out here. I said go ahead, nothing is there. They continued searching…then I heard them talk about getting the Scenes of Crime guys to come here…then they called me and the guy up and said this is what we found. I saw a gun there and they had a cloth with it. They also said they found another in an adjacent building from where I live, and they took me over there…me and the young man and I was telling them that that area doesn’t concern us…I am responsible for over here and they said it doesn’t matter…come, and they still took us. And they took a gun from an area there at the back of the barber shop.”

With the recovery of the two guns, Police detained Wade, Patnett, his wife and three daughters and even the barber who operates his business next door. Those actions have drawn intense criticism.

Audrey Matura-Shepherd

Audrey Matura-Shepherd, Attorney for Yannick Wade

“They detained the barber next door from the Patnett family. They found nothing in that man’s place. Where they found that gun on top of that A/C in an open area…anybody could have walked and put that in there. The man gave a statement up front saying his whereabouts, everything, and they still held him for forty-eight hours just because they could. And that’s a problem. That’s the aspect of this issue that I have a problem with. That not because the law says that you can hold someone for up to forty-eight hours it means that you have to do it. If you have nothing on them then why just frustrate them. That’s what they did to all the women in this household. The girl is eight months pregnant and she began spotting because of the trauma of everything, and they didn’t give a darn. They had nothing on them, and they already knew that they were going to charge Yannick.”

Patnett and his family were later released, but Police are convinced that Wade is responsible for the weapons stolen in San Pedro.

Desiree Nicholas

Desiree Nicholas

“I always try to keep an open mind. I know how I raised my son. That’s not how I raise him. I’ve asked him to tell me the truth…because I said Yannick I’m your mother, I mean the best for you…if you don’t even tell anybody else the truth, tell me. He said Mommy, I don’t know anything about the guns. I believe him. I believe him.”

Mark Patnett

“I’m sure that they realized that me and my family had nothing to do with any weapons. I mean from the first instance they came in. Let’s face the fact out here…whenever you have things in your home and the Police come you always want to argue with them, and you don’t want to cooperate. But I didn’t do that because I’m sure.”

Audrey Matura-Shepherd

“The way the search was conducted is very tainted. Police have to learn that the law is clear that you can search but you have to have the people right next to you cause as a result of you not doing that there are allegations of you planting it. And look at the open area. There is a lot that went on and a lot of motives, but we won’t discuss that right now because clearly we are going to wait for the matter to go to trial.”

Viewers please note: This Internet newscast is a verbatim transcript of our evening television newscast. Where speakers use Kriol, we attempt to faithfully reproduce the quotes using a standard spelling system.

I do not understand what kind of training the police force has or they are so stupid or naive,but even the most ignorant will believe that they found the guns without any witness around ,this smell a set up,well again police have their own laws and their own agenda.

Even if he had stolen those guns, it will never hold up in court. The ignorance of these police officers. I’ve been saying since February of this year when I first started looking at Belize news online, and as recently as last week, educate these police officers. Give younger men and women with some level of education, and who may be interested in a career in law enforcement but don’t pursue it because of low wages and the nonsense which occurs, incentives to join and let them come in with some rank after basic training. The irony of it all, the trauma which these people have gone through and will continue to experience until this case is over with. We need to have lawyers from other countries practicing in Belize and send our lawyers to theirs so as to cut down upon corruption and dishonesty. Most lawyers in Belize take cases because of money and has no knowledge of the law nor do they keep up with the rulings on cases. The bigger ones are too busy trying to make the corporate hustle and the ones such as: Ernest Staine (“Mr. Probate Lawyer” who most times end up with his name on some old person’s or some unknowledgeable person’s property), Arthur (Always representing the plaintiff and defendant or never return a call after he gets a measly $300-$1000 downpayment) Saldivar,, Dickie (Pimp) Bradley, couldn’t even represent my dog. The list goes on and on. Audrey is getting a lot of business right now because she seems to champion the poor and the oppressed right now. I’ve known you for a while and you have great respect for my family Audrey; don’t let this popularity taint you. The money will come , but be honest. There’s also the two young attorneys at Legal Aid, Ms. Shoman and the “Cute One in the front office on the right.” LOL. I can’t remember her name. I also spoke with the youngest Perrera a couple years ago, brother of the Perrera in Pen Road who is the broker. He seemed genuine. Until we can start suing GOB successfully in court, things won’t change.

Why is it so hard to believe that the guns were stolen by this Police Officer. They must have sufficient evidence to follow that led to him. Poor mother who thinks her son will tell her everything. I understand her wanting to protect her son, but it so happens that the guns were found in close proximity to where he lives. Can we just use some common sense.

Really???? The guy disappears and calls in sick after a major theft at a police station where he works. Then two of the guns appear on or near his girlfriends family property. Wade is not the sharpest tool in the shed and neither are the people that believe he did not commit this crime.